Online Counselling Services
Abuse
Held memories of childhood abuse whether it be emotional, physical or sexual can affect someone’s ability to live their life in a way that they might wish for. Communicating safely can begin the process of understanding, learn healthy coping mechanisms and begin to move beyond its powerful hold.
Anger
A powerful emotion, which is often channelled in a destructive way, anger can be devastating to the person experiencing it and those in close contact. Learning to know the roots of anger, recognising triggers and seeing how it can be channelled safely and creatively can be achieved by talking honestly with a counsellor.
Anxiety
Excessive fears and worry, panic attacks, phobias obsessive compulsive disorders and post traumatic stress are all forms of anxiety which has become out of control. Therapy can help to recognise the three elements; physical symptoms, emotional and the thoughts that are triggered by anxiety. It can be fast, practical and effective in helping you to get life back on track.
Bereavement
Every one has a unique experience of grief and loss. It is normal to feel deep sadness and even anger when someone close to us leaves us or dies. Some get stuck at different stages of the cycle of loss where other move through. This can increase the possibility of grief turning to depression as feelings turn inwards. Talking with a qualified counsellor can help to make the adjustments needed for all the changes, which come with loss.
Body Image
The perception one has of their own body shape or facial features can deeply affect their self-esteem. In a world where normal bodies are not celebrated in the media this has become a deep-seated issue for many. The counselling relationship can encourage the individual to celebrate their positive attributes and play to their strengths whilst increasing understanding of what really makes some one attractive and charismatic.
Career
Are you doing what you really want to do with your life? Have you got a dream and don’t know how to take the first step? Or are you at a crossroads in your life and don’t have a clue which way to turn? Discussing your options and mapping out your future with a life – coach or counsellor can be a catalyst for exciting change.
Children and Young People
I have a lot of experience in working therapeutically with young people from the age of six. Using creative techniques such as story telling and art work and recognising the impact of experience on the developmental age of the client my aim is to minimise damage and teach robust coping strategies. Knowing that no child exists in isolation I will invite significant other’s into the process if appropriate.
Domestic Violence
Domestic violence is the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior perpetrated by an intimate partner against another. It is difficult for victims of domestic violence to seek help for all sorts of reasons. Finding support online can be the first step towards empowering oneself to break the sublime cycle of abuse that affects the whole family in a deeply damaging way.
Depression
This is a common condition that will affect one in three people at some time in their life. It is a complicated illness with many different symptoms and causes. Sufferers can become emotionally detached from those around them and withdraw into a world of their own. Some describe it like being in a prison with no windows or doors, which can alienate friends and relatives, increasing the isolation. It is difficult to talk but by maintaining a connection with a therapist can make the difference between sinking further and finding ways forward.
Life Coaching
Each unique individual lives a life made up of different aspects. Keeping these in balance can sometime feel like spinning plates, but balance is all-important as when one aspect is neglected or takes too much energy and attention all the others are affected. Learn how to affect balance and enjoy aspects of yourself, which have been sidelined for too long. Life coaching offers an overview, which can bring everything into focus.
Parenting
All stages of parenting can bring their own challenges. From the adjustment of being a responsible for a new born to the massive shift when our children leave home and make their own way in the world. Offloading frustrations and fears can help to be a more effective parent and keep a sense of one’s own identity outside of that very demanding role.
Relationships
Ways of relating are learned at a young age within the family we grew up in and we can become stuck in unhealthy and unhelpful habits that restrict our lives. Under pressure we often revert to familiar patterns. Self-respect and liking oneself are the most important ingredients for any good relationship. If these are in short supply you may consider counselling to address them. Counselling can help us to understand the messages and habits we may have inherited from the family in which we grew up and offer new, healthier skills to realise our potential.
Sexuality
Many people find it extremely hard to recognise why they are attracted to an individual of the same sex or both sexes when it is perceived as 'natural' to be interested in the opposite sex. These feelings are extremely common and there are millions of people all over the world experiencing these emotions. It is normal for people to feel confused about their emotions and nervous about how others will react. The non-judgementalism that counselling offers can help someone to accept themselves and begin to embrace their own choices and enjoy who they are.
Stress
When your reactions to stress are dominating your life and there is no chance to switch off, it is time to seek help. Sleep problems, increased use of substances and anger outbursts are all early symptoms. Some people are unable to acknowledge the stress they are under and may unconsciously project it onto partners or children. Once stress is recognised and understood a person has a better chance to learn to cope with it. Counselling can identify particular triggers for stress and help to re-assess the value system, which may have prevented them from setting appropriate boundaries.
Substance –Abuse and Addiction
Using substances or engaging in addictive behaviour can allow people a temporary escape from their problems, and can develop from many activities; alcohol, drugs, eating, gambling, shopping, sex and use of the internet. Often, the long-term consequences bring extra guilt and shame, which eventually create an increasingly destructive cycle, drawing in family and friends. When life is empty and the chemicals, which stimulate the highs of life, are not naturally present; when we are low or unfulfilled, the tendency to addiction can increase. A skilled therapist or counsellor can help an addict to start to understand their emotional needs and face the realities of life with more hope of addressing the underlying problems attached to their addiction.
Self-Harm
The motivations for self-harm vary as it may be used to fulfill a number of different functions. Including a coping mechanism, which provides temporary relief of intense feelings such as anxiety, depression, stress, emotional numbness and a sense of failure or self-loathing. Self-harm may become a means to dissociate or ‘go away’ from themselves. Therapeutic approaches to working with self-injury require a sensitive and open mind. Understanding of the roots of the behaviour is needed before looking at ways to find new ways to manage emotional pain.